


There's Nothing That Chemistry Can't Solve

by Autumn_Frost



Category: Big Hero 6: The Series (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Humor, No beta we die like Tadashi, Rarepair, Romantic Friendship, i just think they're neat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-19 01:48:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29499843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Autumn_Frost/pseuds/Autumn_Frost
Summary: An awkward situation causes Honey Lemon and Globby to question the nature of their relationship.
Relationships: Globby/Honey Lemon (Marvel)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Catalyst

**Author's Note:**

> I know I'm not the only one that likes this ship, so when I stared into the empty GlobbyLemon void I realized…
> 
> Someone has to help.

Honey Lemon let out a dreamy sigh. Fingers gripping the charcoal stick, she glided it over the page in front of her as she added shading to the eyes of her subject.

Maybe it was the time of the year. Or maybe it had to do with that new TV drama she was watching. For whatever reason, he'd been on her mind recently.

André.

She wondered what he was doing, if he'd gone to college or started working. Did he still live in France? What did he look like now? The only reference for her charcoal sketch was a photograph in her school yearbook on a page featuring the foreign exchange students, and whatever flashes of him had been stored in her memory: a rounded face, curly hair, and glasses that framed his light eyes.

Did he remember her? Probably not. It had been years, after all. Most likely he had a family of his own by now.

She sighed again, this time a bit more wistfully. Then she chuckled to herself. If Go Go were home, she'd probably roll her eyes in annoyance at Honey Lemon's sappiness.

A few rapid knocks on the apartment door startled her out of her thoughts.

"Honey Lemon, are you there? It's me, Globby!"

She smiled and set down her charcoal, reaching for a tissue to clean her hands. "Come in!"

The shapeshifter squeezed through the gap under the door like a sheet of paper and rolled across the room in a ball, popping back into his default form when he reached her. "Thank goodness you're here! I need your help with something really urgent- hey, what are you working on?" He curiously turned his attention to the sketchpad on the easel.

"Oh, uh, it's just a drawing of André." She couldn't remember if she'd mentioned him before, so she added, "He was my first love. Besides chemistry, that is. But I never got to tell him how I feel." She stopped, a little embarrassed admitting that all of a sudden.

But Globby didn't comment on that. "It looks great!" he praised. "You know, I dabbled in art when I was little."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but my mom said it was a waste of time and that I wasn't good at it anyway."

"Oh." Honey Lemon bit her lip pensively. Then she got an idea and said, "Hey, maybe one day I can give you some art tips, if you want."

He looked surprised at first before grinning at her. "Really? Sure, that'd be nice!"

"Mm-hm." It would be, since she didn't get to hang out with him as much as her other friends, and none of them expressed any interest in learning about art. Besides Baymax, though that was a special case. Honey Lemon remembered something and asked, "Wasn't there something urgent you needed help with?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah!" The smile vanished from his face and his eyes narrowed anxiously. "Um, well it's not really urgent so much as it's odd…"

Concerned, she inquired, "Are you having more nightmares? Is your chemical composition unstable?"

"No, nothing like that…" He glanced away, nervously fidgeting his hands.

"It's okay, you can tell me," Honey Lemon assured.

Globby finally looked at her and blurted out, "I need a girlfriend!"

She squeaked, "What?"

"Wait! Wait! Not you!" he amended quickly, waving his hands. "And I meant to say _fake_ girlfriend! It makes sense in context, I swear!"

She relaxed slightly. "Um, maybe we should sit down and you can explain."

When Globby sat opposite to her on the sofa and calmed down, he started, "You know how I got to be so popular after I became a hero? Well, at first I liked all the positive attention, but now I'm getting creeped out by a lot of my fangirls that keep trying to ask me out."

She raised her brows in surprise, both at his predicament that she'd been unaware of and the fact that he thought it was a bad thing. "Why? There's nothing wrong with someone liking you."

"Yeah, but…" He sighed, looking down. "They only like me because I'm a superhero with amazing powers. Once the novelty wears off and all that's left is some dorky guy, they'll just dump me."

Honey Lemon frowned sympathetically. "You don't know that."

"Nobody liked me before I became Globby." He was suddenly looking at her intensely. "Even Felony Carl thought I was a loser. That's why I'm not taking any chances."

Her lips parted to say something encouraging, but nothing came out. It seemed pointless to try to convince him when he was already so afraid of getting hurt. Instead she wondered, "So how is having a fake girlfriend going to solve your problem?"

"If everyone thinks I'm already in a relationship, they'll back off," he said simply. "So that's why I wanted to ask you if you knew anyone that would be willing to play the part."

"But why come to me?" she wanted to know.

His expression softened. "Well… Every time I had a problem, you were always the one to help me."

She blinked, and found herself smiling warmly.

Then Globby crossed his arms and glanced to the side. "Besides, if I asked Felony Carl he'd just say it's a stupid idea."

Honey Lemon chuckled. "All right." She stood up, putting on her usual bright grin. "Let's go find you a girl!"

* * *

The two of them stood in front of Hiro's aunt Cass, grinning expectantly.

Cass, on the other hand, stared at them like she was waiting for the punchline to a joke, and also like she realized the joke wasn't a joke at all. Or even remotely funny. "Uhh… Sorry, no."

"Is it 'cause I made a mess of your café last time?" Globby asked dejectedly.

"What? No!" Cass replied overenthusiastically as if it would convince them she was telling the truth. She fumbled a bit before adding, "It's just that I'm really busy with work and…" She gestured vaguely. "...things right now."

Honey Lemon gave her an understanding smile. "Oh well. Thanks any-"

"Great, good luck!" Cass closed the café door.

* * *

"Even if I wanted to, I can't help you," Judy droned, barely glancing at them over the rims of her glasses as she worked at her computer. "Mr. Krei gave me a 'no dating' clause in my contract."

"That's awful," Honey Lemon remarked. "Why would he do that?"

"In order to dedicate myself to being his full-time assistant, he thinks it's best if I'm not in a relationship, real or otherwise." Judy took out her lengthy contract and flipped through the pages, then showed them one section of fine print.

Honey Lemon and Globby peered closer at the line which read: "I will not get involved in any romantic relationships, including fake ones to help someone else with a problem."

Globby shook his head. "Wow, no loopholes there. It's airtight."

Judy glared at the stack in her hand and stated bitterly, "And I'm going to change that as soon as it expires."

* * *

Go Go popped the bubble she was blowing. "No."

Unsurprised, Globby turned to Honey Lemon and said, "I told you she wouldn't go for it."

"Oh come on, Go Go!" Honey Lemon pleaded. "We've tried everybody! Cass, Sara, Judy, Momakase-"

"You asked _Momakase_?"

"Let's just say she let her graphene blades give her answer," Globby deadpanned.

Go Go prepared to take off on her bike again. "Yeah, well, that's not gonna change mine."

Honey Lemon stepped in front of her, pouting. "But, why not?"

"Because it's a stupid idea."

Honey Lemon's mouth hung open and she glanced at Globby for a rebuttal. When he just shrugged, she said to Go Go, "Well... You're just being pessimistic."

"Look, whenever something happens, it's always you two." Then Go Go corrected, "Well, most of the time it's Fred. But you get it." She steered her bike around them. "Leave me out of this."

Honey Lemon watched Go Go ride away down the street before turning to Globby with an optimistic smile. "Don't worry, we'll just keep trying."

He looked doubtful. "I don't know, maybe Go Go's right. I was the source of a lot of problems in the past…"

"But you set a lot of things right, too," she reminded. "And when we work together, there's nothing that-"

"Oh my gosh! It's Globby!" squealed a voice from down the street.

They turned around to see three excited women rushing over to them.

"Is it too late for me to turn into a lamppost?" Globby asked from the corner of his mouth.

The first girl to get there clasped her hands and declared, "Globby, I love you! I'm, like, your biggest fan!"

The second girl pushed her aside. "No, I am! Please go out with me!"

"No, me!" the third whined, trying to squeeze through the first two.

"Uh…" Globby leaned back, clearly unsure how to handle this.

"You can't!" Honey Lemon spoke up, surprising herself with her quick reaction. When the ladies stopped their struggle and finally noticed her presence, she went on, "Uh, I mean, you probably didn't know, but I'm his… girlfriend."

Their eyes widened. "What?" all three said, looking to Globby for confirmation.

He himself briefly looked caught off guard, but he put on a confident smirk as smoothly as if it were one of his transformations. "That's right, she is."

"Oh…" the fangirls groaned in disappointment. Clearly defeated, they turned and started to walk back the way they came.

"Who is that girl, anyway?" one of them muttered.

Another responded, "I dunno, but she's so lucky…"

The rest of their conversation was out of earshot, and Honey Lemon breathed a sigh of relief. Then realization set in and she whirled around to her friend, hands over her mouth. "I'm so sorry! I just reacted without thinking!"

"Oh hey, don't worry about it!" He waved dismissively. "I mean, it worked, didn't it?"

"Yeah," she said with a nervous giggle. "Not such a stupid idea after all, huh?"

"Yeah." Then his laughter subsided and he became serious. "But, um, are you… okay going along with this? I know you don't like being dishonest…"

Honey Lemon thought it over. "True, but I did promise to help you. And I was the one who started faking it, anyway," she pointed out. "Besides, it's just for a little while, right?"

He nodded. "Just until the city believes it. We'd have to make a few public appearances together, so let me know if you have any ideas."

"Got it." Glancing at the sky, she noted, "It's getting late. We can continue tomorrow," and started for the streetcar down the block, only to see it pull away from the stop. "Oh, we just missed it…"

"Hang on." Globby wrapped one arm around her waist and stretched out his other one at the streetcar. It stuck to the side next to the door and he released the tension.

Honey Lemon yelped in surprise as they were flung forward, past random people on the sidewalk as the streetcar made its turn. They flew through the door and landed in two conveniently empty seats. "Phew," she breathed. "Thanks, Globby."

He leaned back with his hands behind his head. "At least with me, you'll never miss the bus again."

* * *

This wasn't supposed to happen.

He'd only gone to her because he didn't know who else to turn to for something like this, but he never intended for her to actually _be_ his fake girlfriend. What if it damaged her reputation? What if it ruined her chance to be with a guy she actually liked?

Would he really risk her feelings to protect his own?

Globby sank further in his seat. It was too late now, anyway. They'd already been seen together, not just by three of his fangirls, but probably by dozens of people when they wandered the city. With any luck the rumors would spread quickly and this whole thing would be over and they could just go back to their normal lives.

But… then what? Would his fangirls return if they thought he and Honey Lemon "broke up"?

He grumbled to himself, "I really should've thought this through." After a pause, he turned his head to glance at her.

She was leaning against the window with her phone, photographing the sunset. Having been lost in her world of rose and gold hues she must not have heard him. A smile played on her lips as she adjusted filters and settings. It seemed like she really wasn't bothered at all.

Somehow a bit of his doubt went away, but he still hoped one day he'd be able to make it up to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you and please let me know what you think so far.
> 
> Next chapter: hilarity ensues.


	2. Synthesis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first half of this chapter spans several weeks. The other half is a glorified guest appearance.

After a couple days of planning, they agreed on the first place they wanted to go.

Which honestly kind of surprised Globby. It certainly wasn't conventional as far as first dates went, even less so coming from the mild-mannered girl accompanying him. "I gotta say, I never expected you to be a fan of wrestling."

"I didn't expect it myself," Honey Lemon admitted, sitting on the bleachers. "But after a few seconds watching my first match, it was like, boom!" She gestured a mind bomb. "Like the time I mixed my first reactive chemicals. I was hooked ever since!"

Globby settled in beside her. Having never been to a wrestling match before, or even watched them on TV for that matter, he wasn't sure what to expect. "Well, first time for everything."

The lights dimmed and spotlights spun around, inciting the audience to cheer in anticipation. The spotlights focused on the ring, where the wrestlers in the match, Uncle Samurai and Puma King, were introduced. This was met with even louder screams.

Despite not actually having ears anymore, the sound was deafening to Globby and he could feel the vibrations rippling through his soft body. "Is it always this loud?" he practically had to shout.

Honey Lemon shouted back, "You get used to it!"

The fight began, and Globby winced as blows were dealt and bodies were thrown. At the same time, he couldn't help but take mental notes of some of their moves; maybe he could use them in crime fighting.

"GO UNCLE SAMURAI! SHOW 'IM WHO'S CHAMP!" screamed Honey Lemon. Her eyes had taken on a wild look and she leaned forward, clenching her fists in passion.

Globby blinked. And he thought _he_ was the one who could transform on a dime. For a moment he just watched her, finding more fascination in her amusing reactions than the actual match. This was a side of Honey Lemon he wasn't used to seeing, which ended up endearing her to him more. And maybe he imagined it, but the roar from the crowd didn't seem to bother him as much now. He even wondered if cheering along with them would be more fun.

Then he got an idea. Taking a deep breath, Globby turned his head into an amplifier and boomed, " _GO UNCLE SAMURAI_!"

The fans directly in front of him were blown out of their seats, and anyone else nearby covered their ears in pain.

Globby turned back to normal when he noticed the angry glares he was getting. "Sorry!"

Honey Lemon was the only one who stared at him in surprise. Then she praised, "Now you're getting it, Globby!"

His confidence returned and he kept cheering with her, this time at the same level as everyone else. He was even starting to get really into the match.

At one point, Uncle Samurai was suddenly pinned down and looked like he was struggling.

Honey Lemon gasped anxiously. "Uncle Samurai's in trouble! Oh, if only he had a steel chair!"

Globby glanced at her, then back at the wrestler in determination. "One steel chair coming up!" He stood and threw a piece of himself to the ring, turning it into a steel chair on the way.

Uncle Samurai caught it with one hand and whacked Puma King right off of him with it.

The audience went wild and proceeded to watch as Uncle Samurai dominated the rest of the fight and knocked out his rival.

When it was all over, Globby left the arena with Honey Lemon, his audio receptors still ringing.

"What did you think?" she asked loudly. "Did you have fun?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I did! Thanks for suggesting it!"

"No problem! You can pick our next 'date'!" Honey Lemon said with a not so subtle wink.

He was actually looking forward to it.

* * *

Honey Lemon stepped off the Ferris wheel after him. Coming to the weekend carnival had been a great opportunity for her to take some pictures. "I got so many nice shots of the city," she excitedly told him, browsing through them on her phone. She lingered on a photo of the two of them. It was tradition for couples to kiss when they got to the top of a Ferris wheel, but to spare them any discomfort, she opted for a selfie with him instead.

"It was a great view," Globby agreed. "And funny enough, I used to be scared of heights before my mutation. Now I can fall from any height and not even get a single scratch!" His green eyes suddenly widened in total seriousness. "Hang on… can I even _die_?"

She waved her hand with a nervous smile. "Let's not try to find out, okay?" Weeks ago she probably would've loved to run experiments on him to test the limits of his abilities, albeit in a way as safe as possible. But now, if something were to go wrong...

She'd already lost one friend, and that had been hard enough. But even just the thought of losing Globby scared her more than she thought it would.

A series of screams from the other end of the carnival caught her attention and she looked up in time to see dozens of people leaping out of the way of a charging-

"HIPPO!" she shrieked, her body flooding with icy panic. The logical solution to run was drowned out by the alarms in her brain. All she could think about was the hippo. Getting closer. Right in her path.

The path was suddenly blocked when Globby leapt between them. "Hey, why don't you pick on someone your own species?" He turned his gelatinous mass into the shape of a hippo and attempted to roar.

The hippo stopped in front of him, but the display only seemed to anger it more. It roared in return and swung its large head, sending Globby flying into one of the nearby booths.

Like a scene from a violent movie, he splattered from the impact in all directions. He let out a groan, sounding dazed, and slowly started reconstructing himself.

Something snapped inside Honey Lemon and her limbs were freed from paralysis. Before the hippo could charge at Globby again, she ran in front of him with her arms spread out protectively.

And then put on her best nightmare face.

The hippo immediately shrank under her fierce glare.

It was with a clearer mind that Honey Lemon noted the porcupine quill sticking into the hippo's snout, and she softened. Keeping her movements slow, she brought a shaky hand closer to its face. "Easy, now…" she whispered, heart still ramming her chest. She gulped, pinched the end of the quill between her fingers, and yanked it out quickly.

The hippo grunted and Honey Lemon squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself. When nothing happened, she took a peek.

All the hippo's anger was replaced with calm relief. It sniffed at Honey Lemon and made a grunting noise as if it was thanking her.

She managed a tiny smile and stepped back, putting more distance between them. Her shallow breathing combined with the adrenaline wearing off caused her to wobble, lightheaded.

Globby steadied her shoulders. "I gotcha."

Forgetting herself, Honey Lemon looked up at him and asked, "Oh! Are you okay?"

"Not a scratch, remember?" he replied with a wink.

"There ya are, Louise!" The man who was apparently the hippo's caretaker ran over. "Lousie, I told ya not to go stickin' your nose in the porcupine's business," he said, giving the hippo a little pat on the neck. He turned to Globby and Honey Lemon. "Sorry if my girl gave everyone a fright. She's really quite the sweetheart."

Still keeping a cautious eye on Louise, Honey Lemon asked, "Um, why do you have a hippo at the carnival, anyway?"

"Whoever guesses the amount closest to Louise's weight will win a limited edition Captain Fancy rock polisher. Anyone wanna give it a go?"

Globby raised his hand.

"Without turnin' into a scale."

Globby lowered his hand.

Honey Lemon forced a smile and said, "No thanks, I've had enough hippo exposure for one day." As the caretaker led Louise away, she asked Globby, "You mind if we go somewhere to get a tea or something? I think I just want to relax right now."

"Sure, no problem." He started to walk to the exit with her. "Sorry about all this," he apologized sincerely.

She shook her head at once. "No, it's not your fault! I'm just sorry I never told you about my fear of hippos."

He was quiet for a few seconds, then he said, "You're afraid of hippos, but you still risked yourself to protect me from one?"

She almost couldn't believe it either. Of course he could survive any animal, she knew that. But all Honey Lemon could think about in the moment was him getting hurt. "Well… I guess I was more afraid of something happening to you," she realized. "You're my friend, Globby. I care about you."

He gave her a gentle look. "Thank you, Honey Lemon. I do, too."

She smiled, feeling more stabilized on her feet already.

* * *

The theater auditorium for _Kentucky Kaiju vs. Alabama Ape_ was pretty full when they had entered. Globby had wanted to go on opening night and, thanks to his celebrity status, scored two tickets for the midnight showing.

Honey Lemon located their seats and saw that they were right in the middle of the row, with people occupying the seats on either side. She prepared to squeeze by them. "Oh, uh, excuse me-"

Globby simply lifted her up and stretched his arms over to their seats, placing her in one of them. He bounced over into the other one.

She regarded him with a grateful expression, then remembered, "Oh, we forgot to get snacks. Want me to run over to the concessions and get some?"

"No thanks, I brought my own." Globby turned one hand into a chocolate bar and his other into a bucket of popcorn. "Want anything?"

Honey Lemon hesitated. "Is it… safe?"

"Sure, I eat myself all the time." Then he squinted. "Wait, that does sound weird out loud…"

She giggled. "Well, I guess I could try the chocolate. For science, of course."

He held it out to her, expecting her to break off a piece. So he was startled when she just took a bite straight out of it.

"Mm! That's really good!"

Globby stared at the chocolate bar on his hand, specifically the edge where her lips had touched, and his cheeks got warm. Should he eat the rest? Would that be weird? Why was he so conflicted about this, anyway? He settled on giving her the whole bar. "So," he said after clearing his throat, "have you seen any of the other Kentucky Kaiju movies?"

"Just the ones Freddie invited us to watch with him in his home theater. I liked the one with Minnesota Moth, she's my favorite." Her eyes shone curiously. "That's who you based your butterfly form on, isn't it?"

"Yes! She's my favorite, too!" He was so glad she got the reference, especially since Nega-Globby critiqued him for supposedly being "inaccurate".

They were quiet once the movie started, though sometimes they made hushed comments to each other or reactions to what was happening. One time he leaned over and whispered a humorous remark, causing Honey Lemon to snort in an attempt to stifle her laughter. He felt an overwhelming sense of accomplishment with that one.

Near the end of the film's long runtime, Globby felt a weight on his right shoulder. He glanced to the side and saw Honey Lemon leaning against him, snoring softly. For a second he just froze, wondering what to do.

Waking her seemed rude, and this _was_ good for their image. But that wasn't the reason he decided to let her sleep on his shoulder.

He just liked it.

When the movie finished, though, he gently prodded Honey Lemon. "Hey, time to wake up."

She murmured something incoherent and pushed his hand away, snuggling into him deeper.

"Wow, your friends weren't kidding about you being a heavy sleeper." He couldn't blame her, though. She was probably used to going to bed at a reasonable hour. Seeing no other choice, Globby scooped her up in his arms and carried her out the theater.

Honey Lemon didn't even stir as he swung through the air between buildings using extra arms, heading for their apartment building. In fact, he could've sworn she looked even more relaxed from the rhythmic swaying.

"You didn't miss much. The ending was kind of a letdown," Globby told her, if only to fill the silence. With both of them being so chatty, he wasn't used to these quiet moments. Almost wistfully, he added, "But I'm glad I got to go with you."

She sighed, "I love you."

His head smacked against the underside of a bridge. Thankfully his hands kept a sticky grip on the structure and Honey Lemon, but all Globby's flustered mind could focus on was what she had said.

"André…"

Oh. She'd been sleeptalking. The rush of heat to his face left as quickly as it had come. For a moment he thought she…

No, that was stupid. Why would he even think that? Perhaps even more confusing to him was that once he realized she wasn't talking about him, he felt so… disappointed.

Globby shook his spinning head, trying to clear out these thoughts, and continued swinging. He must've just been tired, that's all.

But it still didn't explain why he felt the absence of her warmth long after he'd left her apartment.

* * *

"That was so much fun!" Honey Lemon exclaimed as they exited the karaoke bar. "You really do have a great voice!"

Globby grinned, falling into step beside her. "Thanks! You pick great songs."

She pulled out her phone, trusting him as usual to keep her from walking into things. "I'll have to send you the video I took- Huh, that's weird."

"What is it?"

"I'm not getting a signal…"

Faster than either of them could react, an entity came from behind and snatched Honey Lemon.

"Wha- hey!"

"Honey Lemon!" Globby gasped, seeing her in the clutches of Hardlight.

Standing atop his floating holographic platform with a firm grip on Honey Lemon's arm, the masked villain gave a mocking laugh. "You really should've specced into the 'ambush awareness' ability!"

Stunned, though unafraid, Honey Lemon said, "I thought you were still in jail."

Hardlight casually explained, "They let me out after I hacked into Yama's computer for them." Dramatic flair returned as he continued, "Don't bother calling for help. I'm already interfering with your cell reception! Now it's time for me to begin my ultimate mission!"

Globby crossed his arms in annoyance. "Let me guess. Can't get a girlfriend so you had to steal someone else's?"

"Wh- I have a girlfriend!" he countered with a childish foot stomp.

"Oh yeah? What's her name?"

"...Fffffffff- Don't change the subject! Besides, it's not you I'm after. I want revenge against Big Hero 6 for ruining my life. I've seen you hang around them so you must know where they are." Hardlight ordered, "Tell them to go to the abandoned power plant if they want to save this girl."

Honey Lemon brought up, "Wait, didn't you already do the whole 'rescue the princess' thing?" She quickly recovered, "Or, I mean, so I heard…"

"That was easy mode. This time it's _hard_ mode!"

The shapeshifter narrowed his eyes. "What do you plan to do to them?"

Hardlight chuckled darkly. "I want to play a game."

"Well so do I!" He was more than a match for this joke of a villain. Globby prepared to leap at-

"Hard _nope_!" Hardlight's broadsword materialized and he held the edge up to Honey Lemon's throat. "You're banned from this tournament, uber. My only opponents will be every member from Big Hero 6. If I even see your OP face, it's instant game over for your girlfriend."

Globby scowled, but reluctantly lowered his attack stance. He shifted his anxious gaze to Honey Lemon.

"Don't worry, Globby," she assured, calm despite the sword still below her chin. "I know you'll do the right thing."

Before he could say anything to her, she and the masked man disappeared in a beam of light.

* * *

"What's taking them so long?" Hardlight grumbled to himself, pacing back and forth on his platform at the top of the central tower. "Am I just a joke character to them?"

Floating above the drop inside a light cube nearby, Honey Lemon asked, "You wanna talk about it, Ian?"

"Don't call me that!" he snapped.

Oh well. It was worth a try. She heaved a sigh, thinking about how worried Globby looked right before she got taken away. She hoped he was okay. Trying to distract herself, she again swept her gaze around the "level" Hardlight had created within the tower. What new trick was he planning against her friends? And how would they make up for the fact that a member of the team was missing?

She would soon get her answer when Big Hero 6 blasted through the concrete wall. And to her surprise, it really was all six; standing among her friends was another Honey Lemon in her battle suit. It must've been one of Hiro's drones controlling it.

Hardlight flipped his cape and boomed down to them, "Welcome to the boss level!"

"Sorry we're late," said Fred. "We got lost trying to find _your dignity!_ Oh snap!" He held up his hand for a fistbump from the group.

Only Baymax reciprocated. "Balalalala."

"Why can't you guys be silent protagonists?" Hardlight growled in irritation.

Hiro rolled his eyes. "Whatever. We're here now, so let that random, unfamiliar girl go."

"Did you learn nothing from last time? I'll only release her once you've defeated me!"

"Did _you_ learn nothing from last time?" Go Go scoffed. "This is the same setup as before."

He shook his finger. "Not exactly! I fixed all the flaws from the previous design." He hovered over to Honey Lemon. "For example, your princess is completely trapped inside this cube with no way of assisting you, like a true NPC!"

Hiro prepped his magnets. "We've beaten you twice before. This time will be no different."

Hardlight crossed his arms. "Challenge accepted. The battle begins in 3… 2- Psych!" With his right fingers over his power glove, he formed a light cube around the heroes, encapsulating them.

"What?!" everyone else gasped.

The villain cackled. "Oh, you should see your faces! I can't believe you fell for it!" He revealed, "You were expecting a game, but it was a death trap!"

The other Honey Lemon moaned, "Darn it!"

The real Honey Lemon perked in suspicion. _Wait…_

Hardlight continued to gloat, "After I delete you from existence, I'll finally be _the_ top-tier villain!" He executed a command that caused the light cube to steadily shrink. "Bye-bye, Big Hero Sucks!"

Hating how helpless she was right now, Honey Lemon could only watch in horror as her friends desperately tried to escape.

Wasabi instinctively whacked one of the walls with his plasma blade, but to no avail. "Is there anything that can get through this?!" He was starting to get pressed closer to the others.

Baymax tried pushing against the walls with his arms and asked, "Should I use my rocket fist?"

An idea came to Honey Lemon, and if her suspicions were right, it would save them all. "It won't work!" she shouted. Knowing they'd all be in trouble if she gave anything away, she hinted, "The only thing that gets through these holograms is light!"

To her immense relief, "Honey Lemon" seemed to get the message and said in a low voice, "Cover me." While the five other members shifted so they were blocking her from Hardlight's line of sight, she pressed her hand to the cube's back side, eyes closed in concentration. Soon, her entire body became translucent until it perfectly mimicked the material of the hologram, and she stepped right through.

The others still inside the cube spread out a little thanks to her absence, but it wouldn't be long before they would run out of room.

She quickly turned back into her solid appearance and ran out in the open. "You're gonna regret this, Hardlight!"

He reeled. "WHAT?! H-how did you-"

"Let's just say I thought outside the box." With a smirk, the doppelganger threw a chem-ball at Hardlight, though Honey Lemon noticed that it had come directly from her hand and not the chem-purse.

Hardlight lurched out of the way on his platform, and the chem-ball burst into ice shards behind him. "Grr, I call hax!"

"I call it strategy!" She tossed another ball at the ground in front of her and a billow of white smoke engulfed the whole room.

Honey Lemon tried peering through the side of her cube but she must've been as blind as Hardlight, who she could only hear spouting complaints.

The fake Honey Lemon quietly dropped into view, giving her a confident smile.

Honey Lemon grinned knowingly. "Globby?"

Her look-a-like pressed a finger to his lips and winked, then vanished into the smoke.

Hardlight took out his sword and used the broad side as a fan, trying to clear the air, and possibly hit his opponent. "Show yourself, coward!" Once he had dispelled most of the smoke, there was a tap on his shoulder.

He turned just as Globby-Lemon held up a carafe. "Coffee?" the disguised shifter asked sweetly. Then dumped it all over his power glove.

"Noooooo!" Hardlight screamed as sparks flew, shorting out the circuits.

All at once, his holographic projections disappeared. The cube nearly crushing Big Hero 6 finally released them and they panted in relief. Honey Lemon cried out when she suddenly dropped, her prison no longer keeping her suspended in the air.

A pair of arms caught her and she looked up to see her own face staring back at her.

Globby-Lemon flashed her a grin and tossed down a gelatin balloon for a soft landing. They bounced off it and he placed Honey Lemon safely on her feet. For a moment they just beamed at each other, until they remembered they weren't in the clear just yet.

Hardlight scurried along the back wall in an attempt to get out unnoticed. One of Go Go's flying discs stabbed the wall in front of him and he recoiled.

"Game over, Ian." She and the other members surrounded him.

Seeing no escape, he clenched his fists and yelled, "That's it! I'm rage quitting!"

The police arrived soon after Baymax contacted them. As Hardlight was being taken to the car, he sneered at Globby, still disguised as Honey Lemon, "You're OP too, Tall Girl! How many cheaters are there?!"

The heroes just waved at him.

Once the police had gone, Globby morphed back into his neutral form and Honey Lemon threw her arms around him in a tight hug. "That was amazing! I didn't think you'd be here since he told you not to come!"

"Technically, he only said he didn't want to see my face here," he said cleverly. "So I used yours."

Hiro commented, "It was a pretty great idea. Both of you ended up saving us all."

"Yeah, remind me again why we don't use him more often?" lampshaded Wasabi.

While he was bright from the praise, Globby reminded, "I wouldn't have been able to get out of the cube if it wasn't for Honey Lemon."

"Aw, sure you would've!" Realizing she was still holding him, she let go and adjusted her glasses, hoping it hadn't been awkward.

Hiro climbed onto Baymax's back and said, "I better go. If I don't get my project done by tomorrow, Grandville's gonna give me another fan fiction assignment."

The others said their goodbyes. Then in short order, Go Go, Wasabi, and Fred left with their own destinations in mind.

Honey Lemon walked through the city with Globby at their leisure. He'd been unusually quiet, and when she glanced at him he appeared to be deep in thought. Then again, she also hadn't said much since they were left on their own. Perhaps they were both trying to process everything that had happened.

He suddenly met her eyes and she looked away as if she'd been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to do. Since when was she self-conscious around him?

"I'm, um, glad you weren't hurt," Globby finally spoke up.

His sincerity warmed her. "All thanks to you." She nudged him playfully with her elbow. "I told you you'd do the right thing."

Now he was the one to gaze at the ground, almost bashfully. "Thanks for always believing in me."

"Of course." She wanted to add, "That's what friends are for," but somehow it didn't seem enough. Their bond ran deeper than that. After having already saved each other on multiple occasions, she came to trust him with her life. True, she trusted her other friends as well, but Globby was different. Or rather, he was not so different- to her, at least. They had more in common and got along better than anyone else she knew.

So she didn't say anything, because nothing else needed to be said. And even though their pretend date was technically over, she continued to walk home with him because…

Well, just because.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I overdo Hardlight's gamer jargon? Probably. Did I have fun writing him? Definitely.


End file.
